1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an optical fiber connector cleaner to clean an end surface of an optical fiber connector mounted in an optical communication equipment or the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
In an optical fiber connector mounted in equipment relating to the optical communication device, connection and disconnection are performed frequently. When the optical fiber connector is disconnected, dusts, oils and fats, etc. are adhered to an end surface of the optical fiber connector (ferrule end surface), and there could occur a decrease in the transmission performance of the optical signal. Therefore, cleaning of the end surface of the optical fiber connector is carried out when installed and removed. As a cleaning tool to clean the end surface of the optical fiber connector, a cleaning tool which includes a cleaning fiber wound around the distal end thereof like a cotton swab could be used.
However, when the cleaning tool like a cotton swab is used, there is a variation at each cleaning operation and by individuals, accordingly, it is difficult to perform the cleaning uniformly. Additionally, it takes a lot of time to perform the cleaning to clean a device such as an optical communication equipment in which a large number of connectors are built in. Further, cleaning fiber could fall off during the cleaning operation and could adhere to the end surface, therefore, it could cause the increase in transmission loss. In order to solve such a problem, an optical fiber connector cleaner to clean the end surface of the optical fiber connector by wiping with a feeding movement of the cleaning element has been proposed (refer to Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2010-191465)
The optical fiber connector cleaner disclosed in the Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2010-191465 includes a forwarding and reversing mechanism to move the rotation shaft forward and backward in the axial direction and a rotation mechanism to rotate the rotation shaft about its axis synchronously with the forward and backward movement. The rotation mechanism is formed of an inserting protrusion formed on the main body of the case, and a cam groove formed in the circumferential surface of the rotation shaft. In this optical fiber connector cleaner, the inserting protrusion is engaged with the cam groove, when the rotation shaft is moved backward in the axial direction, the inserting protrusion is moved in the cam groove to rotate the rotation shaft forcibly, and when the rotation shaft is moved forward in the axial direction, the inserting protrusion moves the cam groove so that the rotation shaft is rotated in the reverse direction forcibly. When the rotational movement of the rotation shaft is realized by the inserting protrusion and the cam groove, the response of the rotation of the shaft which is linked to the inserting protrusion becomes slow due to backlash of the inserting protrusion in the cam groove, accordingly, there could be a case in which the rotation of the shaft is started with a delay to the forward and backward movement of the rotation shaft in the axial direction, or a case in which the rotation of the shaft is started faster than the forward and backward movement of the shaft. If the rotation of the shaft is started with a delay to the forward and backward movement of the shaft or faster than the forwarding and reversing movement of the shaft, the feeding operation of the cleaning element could not be linked to the rotating motion of the cleaning element, therefore, the cleaning of the end surface could not be performed accurately. Accordingly, there could be a case in which it is not possible to wipe the dirt of the end surface off reliably.
The object of the present invention is to provide an optical fiber connector cleaner which can clean the end surface of the optical fiber connector reliably with a simple operation. Another object of the present invention is to provide an optical fiber connector cleaner in which the rotational motion of the cleaning shaft is linked reliably with the feeding operation of the cleaning tape so as to clean the end surface of the optical fiber connector accurately, and it is possible to wipe the dirt on the end surface off reliably.